Bangladesh faces daunting post-election challenges in economy, garment sector

The biggest challenges that the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has to tackle following its recent victory in the general election are the country’s sluggish economy, high inflation and unemployment.Speaking at a webinar, panellists said voters would judge the new government on its ability to create jobs, tame inflation and steady relations with key partners, even as they commended the peaceful election.Zafar Sobhan, editor of Counterpoint, said: “Let us not forget this was a key driver in the movement that ousted [former prime minister] Sheikh Hasina. The incoming government is promising more jobs to young people. A lot depends on what kind of honeymoon period they get, but that won’t last forever,” he said.The new government would also have to take steps to bolster financial stability, said Sobhan, who was speaking at the seminar organised by the Asia Society Policy Institute on Thursday titled “Bangladesh After the Vote: Democracy, Reform and Foreign Policy Outlook”. He added that Dhaka should focus on stabilising the Bangladeshi currency and lowering the level of non-performing loans.The BNP won 209 seats out of 300 seats, while the main opposition Jamaat-e-Islami-led alliance secured 77 seats in the election held on February 12, Bangladesh’s first polls since the ousting of Hasina and her government in 2024.For the financial year ended June 2025, Bangladesh’s economy grew 3.7 per cent, slowing from 4.2 per cent a year earlier and 5.8 per cent in the 2023 financial year, the International Monetary Fund said in a media release last month. In the current and following financial years, the country’s economic growth is expected to rebound to 4.7 per cent, according to the IMF.